The inaugural FIA Formula E Championship is now getting up to speed. After the opening round in Beijing, followed by a two-month break and the second round in Malaysia, the electrified circus set sail for Uruguay for the Punta del Este ePrix on the Atlantic coast.

What's the difference between Formula One and Formula E? Both are sanctioned by the FIA and have been attracting experienced grand prix drivers for races around the world. But there is, first of all, the obvious fact that (though F1 may have gone hybrid by now) Formula E will be all-electric. Another major difference between the two, however, is the way the teams work.

F1 drivers typically have a shelf life shorter than what you otherwise might call a career. As the constant stream of new, young drivers usurps existing F1 seats, you're left with a wealth of talent available to contest other forms of motorsport. That's how you end up with former grand prix pilots in other series like IndyCar, DTM and even ice racing. Then there's Le Mans.

Many eyebrows were raised when Red Bull jumped from sponsoring existing F1 teams to buying its own 2005, but then the energy-drink giant surprised the pundits again by buying an unprecedented second team in 2006. So why'd they do it? To give the aspiring talents, which the outfit nurtures through its extensive young driver development program, a leg up into the pinnacle of motorsport.

With Sebastian Vettel moving up to the Red Bull senior squad to fill the vacancy left by David Coulthard's, the motor racing community has been held in suspense, waiting for the junior Scuderia Toro Rosso team to announce their drivers for 2009. The team has now confirmed that 20-year-old Swiss driver Sebastien Buemi – part of Red Bull's driver development program, who drove in GP2 last season while acting as test driver for Red Bull Racing – will take Vettel's seat for the coming se